by Betsy Haynes
When Jana walked into the cafeteria at lunch period, the first person she met was Curtis Trowbridge. "I heard the news about you and Randy running for Mr. and Miss Seventh Grade in The Wigwam contest. As you're probably aware, as seventh-grade editor of the newspaper, I have to maintain an unbiased position." Then he adjusted his black horn-rimmed glasses, winked slyly, and said, "But frankly, I'll be pulling for you."
Jana smiled to herself. Curtis was the world's biggest nerd. His straight hair always seemed to have a cowlick standing up in back, even though he obviously tried to plaster it down with something sticky. She had been saved from the mad crush he had on her in elementary school when he met Whitney Larkin at Wakeman.
As Jana made her way through the lunch line, other kids stopped to congratulate her and tell her they would vote for her and Randy. Even Clarence Marshall, who was always a pain, said he would vote twice for her. Three times if she would give him her dessert. By the time she had made her way to where The Fabulous Five were sitting, she had talked to at least twenty people who said she had their vote.
"Jana, we think we've got enough signatures already," Beth said excitedly.
Katie and Christie each had four sheets of paper placed side by side in front of them and were checking names as they ate their lunches. "We're comparing lists to see if there are any duplications," mumbled Katie around a mouthful of yogurt.
"Here's mine," said Jana, dropping her petitions next to the others. "Have you heard about anyone else running?" she asked Beth and Melanie.
The two of them shook their heads.
"I did hear that Chet Miller is going to run for Mr. Ninth Grade," said Beth.
"And I heard that Shelly Bramlett and Daphne Alexandrou are running for Miss Eighth Grade," said Melanie.
"Gee, I don't know which one I'd vote for," said Jana. "They're both nice."
"Seventy-five names for Jana," said Christie. "And no duplications."
"And seventy-five for Randy," said Katie.
"It's not surprising since everyone who signed for Jana signed for Randy, too," said Beth. "When kids think of Jana, they think of Randy and vice versa. Instead of waiting until Friday, you can turn the petitions in today."
Heather Clark and Melinda Thaler stopped at the table. "You and Randy have got my vote," said Heather.
"From what I hear, there doesn't need to be an election," said Melinda. "You and Randy will win easily."
Alexis Duvall stopped by to give her support, too. Jana noticed Geena McNatt, who was by herself as usual. She was drinking a carton of chocolate milk and came up to stand behind Katie as if to eavesdrop.
"Is it true you and Randy are going to run for Mr. and Miss Seventh Grade?" asked Alexis.
"We've got the petitions with seventy-five names on them right here," said Katie, pointing at the papers spread out on the table in front of her.
Christie tossed the papers she had been checking on top of Katie's.
"Those are the petitions?" asked Geena, reaching over Katie's shoulder to spread the papers with one hand as she sucked on the straw stuck into her chocolate milk.
Jana nodded and turned back to speak to the others. "I don't think Randy and I—"
"Look out!" cried Katie. Chocolate milk was running down her front and splashing all over the petitions.
"Oh! I'm so sorry," said Geena, sweetness dripping from her voice.
Jana dabbed at the brown stain on Katie's shirt with her napkin while Katie and Christie grabbed the petitions and shook the milk off them.
Jana stared at Geena in disbelief. Had she spilt the milk on purpose? While Geena said she was sorry, Jana could swear her eyes had a twinkle in them. Jana took a napkin offered by Melanie, and when she turned around again, Geena was gone.
CHAPTER 5
"Can you believe that Geena McNatt!" Katie cried angrily as she held her shirt away from her body so the chocolate milk would dry. "My top is ruined."
"It was probably just an accident," said Christie. "Why would she want to spill milk on you?"
"I don't know, but that's exactly what she did."
"You two haven't had an argument, have you?" asked Melanie.
"No, we haven't had an argument," answered Katie. "I've never even talked to her. There's no reason for her to be mad at me."
Jana looked at her friend's shirt. Chocolate stain ran all the way down from her left shoulder to her waist. "You'd better go to the girls' room and soak it or else it will never come out. I've got a clean T-shirt from gym in my locker. I'll get it and bring it to you."
"While you two do that, we'll clean up the petitions," volunteered Christie. "They may be a mess, but I think Miss Simone will accept them."
As Jana hurried down the hallway to her locker, she thought again about the look in Geena's eyes. No matter what she said, she didn't seem sorry about the accident. But Katie had said she hadn't had any problems with Geena. What other reason could there have been? Maybe it really was an accident. Jana felt sorry for Katie. It would be embarrassing wearing the gym shirt all afternoon.
"I hear you and Randy are running for Mr. and Miss Seventh Grade," said Marcie Bee, whose locker was next to Jana's. She was taking out some books for her next class.
"Yes, we are," Jana replied as she dialed the number on her combination. She hoped that Miss Simone, the principal's secretary, would accept the messed-up petitions. It would be a pain to have to ask all those kids for their signatures again.
"Yeek!" Jana gasped, and felt a shock wave at what she saw when she opened the door.
"What's wrong?" Marcie asked as she yanked Jana's locker door farther open so she could see.
Jana couldn't get out a single word. All she could do was point. Inside her locker the clothes hanging from the hooks were covered with a red mess that was dripping down on her gym shoes. The books and notebooks lying at the bottom of the locker looked even worse. They were drenched in the thick red substance.
Gingerly Jana picked the sleeve of her jacket up with two fingers and examined it closely. It looked too thick to be blood. She sniffed it. It smelled like tomato. It was catsup.
"Oh, no, not you too," exclaimed Marcie. "I just saw Mona Vaughn and Whitney Larkin. Someone had squirted that icky red stuff into their lockers, too. It was all over their clothes and books. Who could have done such a thing?"
"I'm not sure," Jana murmured. Angrily, she pushed aside the jacket to check the white gym-suit shirt she had promised Katie. There was a small smear of catsup on the tail. It could be washed and the damp spot wouldn't show when it was tucked in, but that wouldn't make Katie feel any better. She was mad enough already at having the chocolate milk spilt on her. Jana's shoes and the two books she had tossed in the bottom of the locker were worse off. They were drenched in the icky red stuff.
Jana leaned against the door of her locker with the soiled shirt in her hand. Why had someone squirted catsup all over her things? Whoever it was must have taken one of the squeeze-type catsup bottles from the cafeteria to do it. The pointy spout would fit perfectly through the louvers in the locker doors. That meant it had been planned.
The thought shocked Jana, and a sinking feeling settled in the pit of her stomach. She had been feeling so happy. Everyone was saying she and Randy were so well-liked that they would be a cinch to win the Mr. and Miss Seventh Grade contests. Someone certainly doesn't like me, she thought. I don't know for sure that it was Geena, but who else could it be?
She took the gym shirt from its hook and hurried to the girls' room to give it to Katie.
Katie was still fuming when Jana got there, and the catsup on the shirt didn't help her temper. She was so angry when Jana explained what had happened that her face turned almost as red as her hair.
"That girl is a bully," Katie snarled as she patted the wet spot where the catsup had been with a paper towel.
"I don't know for sure that she did it," said Jana, trying to sound reasonable even though her emotions kept telling her the sneak catsup squirter had be
en Geena.
Katie stopped patting the wet spot and looked up at her. "Can you think of anyone else who might have done it?"
"No, I can't. But remember, you're the one who is always saying we have to be fair, and until we have proof, we can't convict her."
Katie sighed and tucked the still-moist shirttail into her pants. "There are some times when it's harder to be fair than others."
"There's one thing I haven't told you," said Jana.
Katie raised her eyebrows questioningly.
"Someone squirted catsup in Mona's and Whitney's lockers, too."
Katie waved her finger in the air. "What did I tell you? Who else would have done a thing like that to the three of you? You're on her list."
"Well, if we're on her list, why would she want to spill chocolate milk on you? You said you hadn't even talked to her."
"I don't think she intended to spill the milk on me," responded Katie.
Jana stared at her friend. "Well, if you think it was an accident, why are you so mad? That's not like you."
"I didn't say I thought it was an accident. I said, I didn't think she intended to spill it on me. What I think is, she wanted to spill the milk on your petitions. I think she's after you, and that's what makes me mad."
Jana's jaw dropped open. "Me? Why me? Just because I might have seen her take the folder from Whitney Larkin? That doesn't make sense. Whitney hasn't turned her in. She can't prove Geena took her homework."
"I don't know what her reasons are," said Katie. "But I think you had better watch out for her."
Jana stared at her friend. It didn't make sense. Was Geena really doing these terrible things on purpose? Neither Jana nor Whitney had done anything to make Geena mad at them. There had to be an explanation. But try as hard as she could, Jana couldn't think of one.
CHAPTER 6
Jana flattened her petitions on the office counter as well as she could as she and Randy waited for Miss Simone to finish her telephone conversation. Christie, Beth, and Melanie had wiped most of the chocolate stain off of them while she was getting the gym shirt for Katie, but the papers were badly wrinkled and some of the names that were written in ink were smeared.
"What can I do for you two?" asked Miss Simone, hanging up the telephone and coming to the counter.
"We'd like to file these petitions for The Wigwam Mr. and Miss Seventh Grade contest, if they're not too messed up," answered Jana. She was tempted to explain why they were so wrinkled, but she didn't. There wasn't any use stirring up things any more than they already were.
Miss Simone took the papers, and Jana could see a smile dancing at the corners of her mouth as she counted the names. "All the signatures are still legible, but we'll need to check them for duplicates. However, I think these will be just fine. I'll let you know if there are any problems."
"Thanks!" Jana and Randy said in unison.
"Uh, Miss Simone. Has anyone else turned in a petition for the seventh-grade contests?" asked Jana.
"Let me see. No, not yet."
"Thanks again," said Jana, giving her a big smile.
"Just think!" Jana said to Randy when they were out in the hall. "What if no one else runs? Then they wouldn't have to have an election for the seventh grade."
"Yeah," Randy agreed. "But if no one else runs, what does it prove? It certainly wouldn't mean we're the most popular boy and girl in the seventh grade. Besides, I'm not sure I want to know how popular I am. Being popular doesn't mean you're the best person."
Jana looked up at him. He was serious. "I agree," she said, nodding. "If we win, it would just mean we have a lot of friends. I know a lot of people that I think are at least as good as me. Katie is so fair and honest; Christie is brainy and popular; Beth is always taking up causes to help people, like the American Indians; and Melanie is so sweet, and she's the one who wanted to save the animals at the shelter." Jana looked into Randy's eyes. "And then there's you. You've got to be the kindest, sincerest person I know."
Randy's face turned a light shade of pink, and Jana giggled. "You're blushing," she said.
"It's nice that you think so," he said, looking embarrassed, "but I don't think I can live up to that kind of publicity." Then his eyes softened, and he said, "It's great that you think so."
Jana floated down the hall on her way to her next class. Randy was fantastic. She felt Iucky to be going with him.
As she turned a corner, she slammed into Geena McNatt. Both girls' books scattered across the floor, and Jana grabbed at the wall to keep from falling.
"You did it again!" shouted Geena. "Don't you ever look where you're going?"
"Me?" Jana was shouting back. "I was just walking like any normal human being."
"Are you saying I'm not normal?"
Jana had never seen such anger in a person's eyes. She struggled to regain control of herself. She wasn't going to let Geena drag her into a fight. That wasn't the way people solved problems. "Look," she said. "It was just an accident. Let's forget it."
"It's easy for you to forget, Miss Popularity," Geena shot back. "Just because you and your friends think you run the school doesn't mean you can run over people in the hall."
Jana stared at Geena in shocked disbelief. "What are you talking about? I don't think that my friends and I run the school."
"Yes you do!"
Jana drew in a deep breath and looked at the angry girl standing in front of her. She was taller than Jana by a couple of inches, and she was dressed in the same oversized red sweats she always seemed to be wearing. Jana wasn't afraid of her, but she couldn't understand her at all. It was as if she were a volcano waiting to blow.
Calmly, Jana began to pick up her books. Two other kids who had stopped to watch the argument handed her a notebook and two social studies books. One of them was Geena's, and Jana held it out to her. Geena snatched it from her hand.
Jana brushed off her skirt and turned to leave. As she walked away, she could feel Geena's eyes burning into her back.
CHAPTER 7
Melanie stood in the middle of the Edwardses' family room and banged a pen against her soda glass. "Okay, everybody. It's time to put the puppies back in their box so that we can start our meeting."
Groans filled the air.
"Oh, come on, Mel," said Jana. Melanie's family had adopted a dog named Rainbow from the local animal shelter. A few days later, Rainbow had had eight puppies. Now Jana was cuddling two tiny puppies under her chin. "We can talk and hold puppies at the same time."
"Oh, yeah? That's what you think. We wouldn't get a thing done," she countered. "This is important. Put the puppies back."
Reluctantly, Jana placed the puppies close to Rainbow, who had been stretched out in the box quietly watching The Fabulous Five play with her babies. In fact, Jana had been sure that she had been smiling. One by one the others replaced the little dogs, who began climbing all over Rainbow. One fat little puppy who was exactly the same mixture of colors as his mother began tugging on one of her ears.
Melanie looked down into the box and then back at her friends. "Okay. Who's hiding one? There are only seven here."
"Not me," said Jana. "You all saw me. I was the first one to put mine back."
"Me, neither," said Randy, holding his arms wide in a gesture of surrender.
Everyone else shrugged and glanced around, looking innocent, until Christie put her hands on her hips and said, "Okay, Calcaterra. Why is that lump in your shirt moving?"
"Who? Me?" he said. Then he grinned sheepishly. "Oh, yeah. It is moving, isn't it? Must have been something I ate."
"Don't tell me that Mr. Macho is really just an old softie," quipped Katie.
Everyone laughed at that, and Tony unbuttoned his shirt and drew out a brown bundle of fur, which he deposited in the box with the others.
Melanie clanged her glass again. "Before the meeting starts, we have something special to do," she said.
Randy, Shane, Scott, Keith, Tony, and Jon looked at each other questioningly as Ja
na and Christie dug behind one of the couches and brought out the paper bags The Fabulous Five had hidden there earlier. Jana and the other girls each reached in and pulled out small bows made from yellow ribbon and gave one to each of the boys. Then Melanie passed around a small tin box that contained safety pins to the girls.
"These ribbons are to show our concern for Igor," said Jana as she pinned one on Randy's shirt and then her own. "And you're supposed to wear them to school every day until he's well."
"They're kind of like the ones the kids wore for Randy when he was in the hospital," observed Jon.
"There is a resemblance between Randy and Igor," kidded Keith. "In fact, they could be related."
Randy threw a crushed potato-chip bag at him.
"And that's not all," said Beth. "We also have get-well cards for Igor." The girls pulled cards from their notebooks and purses and handed them to Shane.
"Tell Igor we care," said Katie.
For a minute Shane just looked around the room without saying a word. Jana could tell from the look in his eyes that he was moved by his friends' concern.
"I know Igor will appreciate it," he said finally. "You won't mind if he doesn't send you thank-you cards until he gets over whatever he has, do you? I don't think he's up to it yet."
"How's he doing?" asked Jon.
Shane shook his head. "Not good. I still can't get him to eat, and I don't think he has moved two inches since last week."
"What about asking Mr. Dracovitch to look at him?" asked Randy. "He knows a lot of things about biology."
Jana wished she had suggested the same thing to Shane when she was at his house on Monday. Mr. Dracovitch was a biology teacher at Wakeman and he acted pretty weird sometimes. He wore a black wig that made him look like a vampire, but he only did it to interest kids in taking his science classes.
"That's a good idea," answered Shane. "My dad and I've asked everyone else we can think of."
"Now to get on with our business," said Melanie, taking the center of the room again. "We're here to officially start the Jana Morgan and Randy Kirwan campaigns for Mr. and Miss Seventh Grade, and you've all been chosen to serve on the campaign committee."